The problem of safely bracing or shoring cargo in transit has existed for some time and several attempts have been made to solve it.
The closest prior art known to applicant is represented by U.S. Pat. No. 3,049,328 to Bishop. This discloses a telescoping cylindrical rod operated by means of a handle engaging a rack and pinion which operates the telescoping elements of the bar and causes it to engage opposite walls of a carrier and thus provide a bracing effect.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,880,394 to Wisecarver discloses a bracing device having a hollow tube and a concentric screw member which may be operated by a nut and wrench attachment forming an integral part of the mechanism in order to change the length of the overall assembly and thus provide a bracing effect.
None of the prior art presently known to applicant teaches the use of a partition or bulkhead equipped with an adjustable or extensible means for holding such a partition-like bracing member or device in position in the interior of a transportation container to protect the cargo from damage during movement of the transporting vehicle.
Moreover, prior art cargo supporting devices have not adequately addressed the problem of accommodating minor differences in the spacing between container walls during placement or installation of the devices. Thus, such prior devices must be held by hand and adjusted or sized before the final securement or bearing force is applied. This can be difficult and time consuming, particularly if a partition-like member is to be used as a cargo supporting device.